Page 42

“Sorry!” He pushes his chair back angrily and stalks to the sink, where he stands with his hands on his hips, staring out over the dusty paddocks.

After a minute of awkward silence, I realize he isn’t going to speak again, so I do.

“It was my fault.”

That makes them all turn and look at me. Even Pete.

“I got—caught up in business,” I say slowly. “And I was away a lot. Abby wanted us to have a different life. She wanted to come back to Australia, to her family, because she thought maybe this was the life she wanted. ”

I interlace my fingers on the table, staring down at them, trying not to remember that fucking letter.

“I thought she must have decided to stay here. Without me.” The words feel bitter in my mouth.

“Darya was sure I was wrong. She and Abby... they’re close.

Really close. Darya had a baby recently, and Abby promised she’d be back for the birth.

When she didn’t come back, or answer any of Darya’s calls after the baby was born, Darya was convinced something was wrong. ”

And I didn’t fucking listen.

“The baby.” Susan nods, her face sad. “She mentioned that. She said Darya had asked her to be godmother, but she didn’t think it was fair to be a godmother to a baby she wouldn’t ever see.”

Wouldn’t ever see?

It’s suddenly hard to breathe.

She really wasn’t planning to come back.

“Hang on.” Pete is staring at his wife. “That’s what she said? Those exact words, that she didn’t want to be godmother to a baby that she wouldn’t ever see ?”

“Yes.”

He frowns. “But that means Abby was planning to stay here!”

Susan looks at him indignantly. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, Pete.”

“You didn’t bloody tell me that part!”

Her long-suffering eye roll is so like her daughter’s that it would make me laugh if I wasn’t so damned miserable. “You haven’t exactly been listening to me, love.”

Pete runs a bewildered hand through his hair, staring at his wife as he clearly grapples with himself. Finally he turns to me.

“The cops didn’t believe Suze when she told them Abby had disappeared. To be honest, I didn’t either. Not even when they found the car all burned up.” He glances shamefacedly at his wife. “I thought she’d done it on purpose. I thought—” He breaks off, his head lowering.

I finish the sentence for him. “You thought she did it to hurt you.”

His eyes settle on me, but this time they’re not hard. They’re full of something I recognize all too well: regret. “Yeah,” he says quietly. “That’s more or less what I thought.”

“Yeah.” My mouth tightens. “Me too. More or less.”

There’s a long silence, during which Pete never takes his eyes off me.

Then finally, he nods.

He walks over to stand behind his wife, and she reaches up her hand. He clasps it, putting his other hand on her shoulder. “So,” he says, his eyes moving between me and Luke. “What’s the plan?”

“Thailand,” I say in a low voice to Luke.

We’re outside on the pretext of getting something from the car, to give us a moment to talk in private.

“That’s where she’s going to be. Turbo said the Colombians are dealing through Thailand.

My guess is that Abby and this Nico fucker made contacts in Thailand that helped them move on to Colombia.

The contract could have come from either of those places, but either way, Thailand is where we start. ”

I glance uneasily back at the house. “And the last thing we need is Daddy Chalmers along for the ride.”

“Good luck keeping him away,” Luke mutters, pretending to rummage in the back of the vehicle. “He doesn’t strike me as the kind of bloke who gives up easily.”

“It’s not him I’m worried about.” I grimace. “He’s going to end up finding out a lot more about Abby than she’d want him to know. I’d rather spare him that.”

He shoots me a cynical look. “A lot more about you, too. Guessing you’re not too keen on that either.”

No shit. But I’m in no mood to have the obvious pointed out.

I frown at the house, where Pete is packing as we speak. “There’s another problem, too.”

One that’s been pounding through my brain ever since Turbo mentioned Thailand.

“What’s that?”

“Roman,” I say flatly. “He’s got bratva associates in Thailand,” I explain when Luke looks confused.

“And there are protocols we follow in our world. Me rolling up in Thailand and asking for help without a formal connection is bad manners at least, and open provocation at worst. Especially if I’m going to start shit that might interfere with business. ”

“Ah.” He gives me a sideways look. “I take it that calling Roman to make that connection isn’t an option?”

I shake my head curtly. “Mak’s out, too.”

I don’t elaborate, and to my relief, Luke doesn’t push it. Whatever my issues with Roman, I’m not discussing bratva business with an outsider. Not even Luke.

“I’ve got an old army mate who’s been living in Thailand since he got out,” he says. “Handy guy, ex-special forces, so he knows how to stay under the radar. I could give him a call, if you want?”

I clench my fists in frustration. It isn’t that I’m not grateful for Luke’s help. I’m just not used to needing help.

I’m usually the help that others come asking for.

Then call Roman, you stubborn prick.

But I know I can’t.

Wherever this thing takes me, I need to do it alone.

Pete appears on the veranda with a bag in his hand. He stops to hug his wife. “Bye, love. I’ll call you as soon as we know anything.”

“Find our girl, Pete.” She clings to him, giving him a watery smile.

Fuck. I’m not equipped to deal with this kind of wholesome.

“Call your mate,” I say to Luke in an undertone. “I’ll try to head this shit off at the pass.”

He shakes his head wryly. “Good luck.”

I plaster on a smile and go up to the veranda.

“All set.” Pete nods at his bag. He holds up a pump-action shotgun. “And I’ve got a license for this, along with a lockbox, so I can legally carry it.”

Oh, well, that’s a relief. Wouldn’t want to do anything illegal, after all.

Fuck.

I shoot Luke a worried glance behind Pete’s back. He just grins at me, puts his thumb up, and keeps talking in a low voice into his phone.

I scowl at him. Great help you are .

The idea of hunting down human traffickers with a wholesome Australian farmer, one who also has every reason in the world to hate me, holds little appeal.

I try to keep my voice even. “I’m not sure that you coming with us is a good idea, Mr. Chalmers.”

Not to mention the fact that every minute we spend here is wasting fucking time.

“Abby’s my daughter.” Pete breaks his shotgun down and packs it carefully away. “And it’s my fault I wasn’t looking for her sooner. I’m coming.”

I catch Suze watching us from inside and tilt my head toward the vehicle. Taking the hint, Pete follows me out of his wife’s earshot.

“Look.” I turn to face him, bracing myself.

It would have been nice to have a halfway decent relationship with Abby’s father.

But I’m not exactly son-in-law material anyway, and right now, I don’t have time to play nice.

I nod at his gun. “That’s not going to help you.

For starters, you can’t take it on a plane. ”

His eyes narrow. “Why are we getting on a plane?”

“ We aren’t.” I stare him down without smiling. “From the different pieces of information we have, it looks like Abby has already been taken out of the country. Probably to Thailand.”

Pete frowns. “How did you—”

“It’s what I do.” I cut him off. “I’m good at finding things. But that also means going to some dark places. Talking to a lot of unsavory people.”

He glares at me beneath a pair of very bushy eyebrows. “I know what it means.”

I swallow my frustration. “With respect, Mr. Chalmers, I don’t think you do.

Look.” I hold his eyes. “We came here because we thought there was an off chance you might know something that could help us find Abby. And you did. You told us she spent time in Thailand, which is something I didn’t know before.

That gives me a place to start, which is all I need.

But finding her will mean moving fast and hard.

Staying ahead of the people I ask questions of to avoid getting shut down.

Sometimes that’s going to mean doing things you’re probably better staying out of. ”

Pete folds his arms. “But you’re used to doing these things, is that what you’re trying to say?”

I could lie. Could dance around it. But there’s no time for that shit.

“It’s what I do best, Mr. Chalmers.” I return his stare.

“It’s been my life for a long time, which is one of the reasons your daughter left me.

And I want you to know I respect that. I respect her decision.

I’m not searching for Abby to try to talk her into changing her mind and coming back to me. ”

I swallow hard on the pain it causes me to even say that. But this isn’t about me, and Abby’s father needs to know the truth. Even if it fucking kills me to admit it. Especially to him.

“I’m going to find Abby because I love her.” I say it simply, straight to his face. “And because I need to know she’s safe. Even if she never wants to see me again.”

I inwardly wince, but I need to get this out. Before I do even more damage by dragging Abby’s father into a world he should have no part of.

“But to find her,” I go on quietly, “I’m going to need to do all the things she didn’t like. Worse, probably. I’ll be going to places, and into situations, where all the rules you know don’t apply. Places where there are no rules.”

When his grim expression doesn’t change, I bring it home, hard.

“I know that I’m the last man any father would ever want to see their daughter tied up with. But I also know you want to find your daughter, Mr. Chalmers. And whatever else I might be, I am the man who can bring her back to you. I need you to let me do that.”

Pete has stood throughout my little speech without moving his eyes from me at all. There’s a short silence, and I’m not entirely sure whether he’s going to storm off, punch me, or put his rifle in my face. But in the end, all he says is, “Are you done?”

Somewhat at a loss, I nod.

“Good. I’m coming with you. Abby is my daughter.

I won’t get in your way. And if you think I’m a stranger to throwing fists or blowing a hole or two in idiots, then you’ve never worked on an Australian cattle station.

” He gives me a hard look. “And we can talk about who lets who do what when we’re face-to-face with trouble. ”

Oh, for Chrissakes.

Luke interrupts what might have turned into an ugly standoff. “I’ve set it up. Paddy will meet us in Bangkok. There’s a midnight flight out of Perth. If we put pedal to metal, we can just make it.”

I turn back to Abby’s father. “Look, Mr. Chalmers—”

“Don’t bother, mate.” He picks up his bag and strides past me. “And for fuck’s sake, Dimitry, stop calling me Mr. Chalmers. My name’s Pete.”